You got played, but not by scientists. You got played by pundits who turned evolving data into a culture-war slogan. Early messaging about herd immunity was based on what vaccines normally do: reduce spread enough that outbreaks die out. That worked against measles or polio, where the virus barely mutates. SARS-CoV-2 wasn’t like that. It evolved too fast, so the realistic goal shifted from elimination to control.

The definition of “vaccine” never secretly changed. It was clarified to include immune responses that reduce severe disease and transmission rather than guarantee sterilizing immunity. That’s immunology, not conspiracy. Every major vaccine like flu, pertussis, rotavirus all have that same property.

mRNA COVID vaccines still saved tens of millions of lives worldwide and sharply cut hospitalization rates, even after variants eroded transmission blocking. Boosters are needed because immunity wanes and variants keep changing, just like flu shots.

So yes: “trust, but verify” is good advice. But the verification process already happened through global trials, regulatory review, and post-marketing data. The people misleading you are the ones pretending scientific self-correction is the same as deceit.